Kisumu Govenor Jack Ranguma has urged MCAs to stop being selfish and work for residents before the country goes to the polls on August 8.
He said squabbling will in the long-run hurt development and services.
Ranguma on Wednesday called for a cordial working relationship between the assembly and the executive.
He said the county will progress if there is a cordial relationship between the two arms of government.
“The executive and the legislature must pool ideas to transform the county into profitability,” Ranguma said.
He delivered the governor’s address during the assembly’s fifth opening session.
Ranguma said the county government has initiated a number of projects that will transform the lives of residents.
He they will only succeed if the MCAs tone down their “empty rhetoric”. The governor praised the assembly for being proactive in its support for citizen-oriented legislations and scrutinising all the executive’s initiatives.
Ranguma asked the assembly to cooperate, especially when debating on issues that directly affect residents.
“I plead for the spirit of collaboration, which I insist must be in order to help us crack the age-old problems in public health, education, food and agriculture,” he said.
Bonding trip
Last month, Kisumu MCAs went on a Sh15 million retreat in Arusha, Tanzania, for what they said was a bonding session.
A source at the assembly said the retreat was organised by speaker Ann Adul and seconded by executive Ben Opiyo.
The source said the 49 MCAs would pocket Sh260,000 each after the seven-day retreat.
“The MCAs have had bad blood with the speaker and did not agree with the secondment of Opiyo to the assembly, so the retreat is a way of bribing them to accept them,” the source said.
Ranguma said he had nothing to do with the trip.
He said the county assembly is an independent institution whose decisions are not made by the executive.
“Its decisions are made by the county assembly service board,” Ranguma said
The county chief said he was disappointed and it was unfair of the MCAs to travel when the IEBC was grappling with low turnout at the voter registration centres.
Outraged Kisumu residents took to social media and threatened to teach their leaders a lesson on August 8.
“They cannot derail our noble cause of realising ODM party leader Raila Odinga’s ambition,” resident Johnny Tiacha said.
Another resident, who did not want to be named, asked whether the trip was approved by the Devolution ministry. Of what benefit are such retreats to residents? he asked. “Nothing comes out of these retreats most of the time, so why go for them,” the resident said.